its an over the tank filter,inside there is 1 white pad/sponge and inside the sponge is the little black carbon balls.. it says on the instruction manual to remove the sponge and all its contents once amonth and replace with a brand new one. i have my tank up and running nearly 2 weeks now and the sponge is kind of dirty gettin black

just wondering if replacing the whole thing once every month is too much,will i be losing alot of good bacteria from my tank? should i be cuttin up the old sponge and leaving a little piece in the filter when i put a new sponge in?

would like peoples opinions on what i should be doing,mayb i should change it every 3 months instead or what shall i do?

Personally I would see if there was a way to remove the little black balls and fill the sponge with another type of media, like ceramics. Then you wouldn't ever really change it, just rinse it in tank water every once in awhile. If you do decide to use carbon, you really do need to change the carbon every month. It stops working after a time, and if you are only looking to grow beneficial bacteria there are much better media for that.

Personally I would see if there was a way to remove the little black balls and fill the sponge with another type of media, like ceramics. Then you wouldn't ever really change it, just rinse it in tank water every once in awhile. If you do decide to use carbon, you really do need to change the carbon every month. It stops working after a time, and if you are only looking to grow beneficial bacteria there are much better media for that.

That is the same way my uncle clean his fish tank. They been living for 9 years.

You can probably cut the filter cartridge, take out the old carbon and replace it with new carbon. I know they sell loose carbon but I dont know how messy that would be. I have the same filter but instead of the quietflow cartridges, I use the foam for the aquaclear filters and skip the carbon all together unless I NEED it to remove medicine from the tank.

That nasty stuff you see on the cartridge, it may be the bacteria you want to have in the tank. The reason why its not a good idea to replace those cartridges is because the beneficial bacteria will colonize the filter pad and in any decor in the tank. Most of it will be in the filter though. It's better to just swish the cartridge around in old tank water when you do the water change then it is to replace the entire cartridge (and its why I use the aquaclear foam - it lasts ALOT longer). Everytime you replace a cartridge you are tossing out the bacteria you want to keep. The carbon, however will only work for about a month.

You can probably cut the filter cartridge, take out the old carbon and replace it with new carbon. I know they sell loose carbon but I dont know how messy that would be. I have the same filter but instead of the quietflow cartridges, I use the foam for the aquaclear filters and skip the carbon all together unless I NEED it to remove medicine from the tank.

That nasty stuff you see on the cartridge, it may be the bacteria you want to have in the tank. The reason why its not a good idea to replace those cartridges is because the beneficial bacteria will colonize the filter pad and in any decor in the tank. Most of it will be in the filter though. It's better to just swish the cartridge around in old tank water when you do the water change then it is to replace the entire cartridge (and its why I use the aquaclear foam - it lasts ALOT longer). Everytime you replace a cartridge you are tossing out the bacteria you want to keep. The carbon, however will only work for about a month.

i think though i would rather have the carbon that to have nothing? your basically just using the sponge with no carbon? would that mean my filter is doing a better job than your one coz i have the benefit of the carbon?

could you possibly link me a link to the sponges u buy please, because the one that came with my filter they have a plastic frame that the pad is atatched to and this frame slides into the filter box, without this frame i dont think a loose sponge wouldfit in place or even stay in place..

one thing i was thinking of doing was just buying another sponge and wedging it into the filter someplace and elaving that in there along with the one thats allready in there with the carbin it it,that way when im changing the carbon filled pad for a new one ill still have a piece of sponge in there with some bacteria on it..

i was also thinking another option, when i am taking out the old sponge to replace with a new one,i could cut off some of the old sponge and just put it into the filter with the new one for a week or so untill the new filter gets the bacteria on it,then ill throw out the piece of old sponge

The carbon is inert after two weeks so realistically you should be replacing your cartridge every two weeks. Like Tiki said carbon isnt really necessary unless you are medicating, for example, and want to remove the meds from your water. For everyday cleaning the filter pad is fine. To clean your cartridge just swish it in the old tank water every month or twice a month. Any additional media is good because it gives the BB more surface area in which to grow. I have the Marineland Penguin 150 with cartridge and a piece of filter foam in the output that does double-duty as a baffle and BB incubator lol. Seeding your new media when replacing the old is always a good idea.